The Specter of Hypocrisy: Testing the Limits of Moral Discourse

Raphael Sassower examines the concept of hypocrisy for its strategic potential as a means of personal protection and social cohesion. Given the contemporary context of post-truth, the examination of degrees or kinds of hypocrisy moves from the Greek etymology of masks worn on the theater stage to the Hebrew etymology of the color adjustment of chameleons to their environment. Canonical presuppositions about the uniformity of the mind and the relation between intention and behavior that warrant the charge of hypocrisy are critically reconsidered in order to appreciate both inherent inconsistencies in personal conduct and the different contexts where the hypocrisy appears. Sassower considers the limits of analytic moral and political discourses that at times overlook the conditions under which putative hypocritical behavior is existentially required and where compromises yield positive results. When used among friends, the charge of hypocrisy is a useful tool with which to build trust and communities.

Raphael Sassower is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, USA. His work focuses on the philosophy of the social sciences, political economy, postmodern technoscience, social epistemology and critical rationalism. His latest publications include The Quest for Prosperity (2017), Democratic Problem-Solving (co-authored with Justin Cruickshank, 2017), and The Impact of Critical Rationalism (co-edited with Nathaniel Laor, 2018).